I couldn't pass Don Teach's note in 050420 MMDigest without seconding
his disappointment at seeing a unique music roll disappear into
someone's collection where it cannot be copied (recut).  Recutting
a roll is one sure way to guarantee its survival, not to mention making
it available for others' enjoyment.

Fire has claimed more than a few one-of-a-kind original rolls, but
their music survives -- only because their owners were generous or smart
enough to let them be recut.  It must be either a dog-in-the-manger
attitude or fear of an original being damaged in the recutting process
that makes a collector unwilling to share his unique rolls.

Matthew Caulfield (Irondequoit, N.Y.)